


The Survivor

by BardofHeartDive



Series: Tumblr Posts [2]
Category: Mass Effect
Genre: F/M, Virmire
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-24
Updated: 2016-08-24
Packaged: 2018-08-10 18:38:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 704
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7856629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BardofHeartDive/pseuds/BardofHeartDive





	The Survivor

**** Ashley Williams never thought that she’d be content to die. Prepared, yes, at willing, sure, but never content. And yet here she was, relieved to the point of gratitude, that her commanding officer was leaving her to die.

Because it meant Kaidan would live. The adorable dork of a lieutenant, with his surprisingly dry sense of humor and absurdly perfect hair, would live. 

Shepard would rescue him and eventually realize what a mistake she had made, turning him down for the doe-eyed, blue alien. They would have a winter wedding, and four kids and a dog, and a house with a few acres of land in the middle of nowhere. Maybe, if they had a daughter, they would name her Ashley.

They would live happily ever after, but more importantly, he would live. 

A rocket hit the pillar she was using for cover, pulling her from her thoughts. She made its wielder a priority target and brought her assault rifle to the ready. Just because she was happy didn’t mean she would go down easy.

The salarians had a similar idea. She popped up just in time to see two orange bursts and its shields fizzled out. It prepped its rocket launcher to fire but didn’t survive long enough to keep the shot properly aimed. The weapon went off as the geth collapsed in a flurry of clicks and squeals. The rocket exploded against the wall of the lab, bringing down an avalanche of stone and rubble. Three of the four salarians in the area were immediately crushed but the fourth staggered forward into an open swath of ground, a perfect target.

Ash didn’t take the time to put her gun up. She simply dropped it as she yelled for covering fire and sprinted toward him. Salarians as a rule were tall but light and she had no trouble throwing him over her shoulder and carrying him until the biotics hit her in the back. It knocked her off her feet, the salarian toppling forward ahead of her, and left her sprawled prone on the ground. An enraged roar sent a rush of adrenalin through her and she drew her shotgun and rolled onto her back.

The first shot hit the krogan in the chest but didn’t even faze him. She angled the second higher, catching him in the neck and head. He roared again, the sound distorted by damage to his face, but kept on coming. When she pulled the trigger a third time all she got was a useless click and overheat alarms.

The krogan’s head exploded. Ashley caught a quick glimpse over his shoulder - the biggest sniper rifle she’d ever seen, a flash of shockingly red hair, the N7 insignia emblazoned on a chestplate - and then she was crushed under 400 pounds of muscle and bone.

* * *

The first thing Ashley saw was surprisingly like the last thing. Commander Shepard was standing over her, the rifle and chestplate haphazardly piled on a medbay bed behind her. She leaned closer, about to say something but Ash didn’t give her the chance. She bolted upright, hands clawing at the commander.

“You!”

For all her presence and ferocity, Shepard was actually a tiny woman, much smaller than Ashley. She caught her by the shoulders and half-shoved, half-threw her back. She surged forward while the commander was still reeling and grabbed her by the collar. Shanxi be damned, from now on the Williams family would be known for killing the first human Spectre.

“You said you were going back for him!” she screamed. She was crying, her vision blurred beyond use, and she tried to convince herself they were tears of rage. “Him!”

She heard the medbay doors open but ignored them. She shook Shepard one more time before releasing her and turning toward the reinforcements who were undoubtedly there to arrest her. She expected cold hands but instead found warm arms.

“Ashley.”

Kaidan whispered her name soft in her hair, then took in a deep breath. His hug tightened, almost to the point of discomfort and it took her a while to realize he was the one shaking. Or maybe they both were. They were certainly both crying.

But more importantly, they were both alive.


End file.
